“Why, Rachel Bishop, I do declare.”
Rachel identified the sacchariney sweet Southern drawl and cringed. Debra Sue Jensen, one of the girls who’d done their best to make Rachel’s time here miserable. The nasty rumors Debra Sue and her besties had thrived on had only increased once Rachel had caught Matt’s attention. Wishing she could ignore her and walk away, Rachel instead pasted on a polite smile and turned to face the debutante witch of Johnstonville High.
“Hello, Debra Sue.”
“What a surprise to see you back in town.” She sneered at Rachel’s wrinkled clothing as if she knew it had come off the laundry room floor. “That’s a new look for you. Isn’t it?”
Rachel bit her tongue on a waspy comeback. She’d decided to wear her own dirty clothes rather than an outfit Matt had bought for her sister. But she couldn’t help feeling at a distinct disadvantage next to the Barbie doll perfection of her old nemesis.
“And you haven’t changed a bit.” Debra Sue was still a bitch who dressed like the beauty contestant she’d once been. How many other women donned four-inch heels and a designer outfit to buy a loaf of bread?
“I hear you’re Chastity’s guardian now? But then I guess Hope didn’t really have a choice, what with your parents gone and no man of her own. But for that poor child to be thrust upon a stranger—”
Anger sparked like flint. “I’m not a stranger. I’m her aunt.”
“I’m sure Hope thought she was doing what was best for Chastity to leave her with family, but—”
“She was. I couldn’t love Chastity more if she were mine, and I’ll always do my best for her. Hope knew that.”
A stenciled eyebrow rose. “Let’s hope your best is good enough. It never used to be.” With that parting salvo, Debra Sue hiked her nose in the air, pivoted on her fancy heels and stalked off, leaving Rachel with a stranglehold on her temper and her shopping cart.
People like Debra made lingering in Johnstonville impossible. If that gossipmonger even suspected the truth, she’d spread her tales far and wide, not caring that Chastity could be hurt in the process.
Rachel would have to pack the essentials and hustle Chastity back to Atlanta by the end of the week. Sometime this summer they’d come back, finish packing and put the house on the market. Chastity might hate it in the short run, but in the long run it was better than the truth getting out and imploding her world. If that happened, Chastity would lose her mother all over again, and she would hate Rachel.
* * *
DETERMINED TO USE the empty house to her advantage, Rachel dug out her phone and dialed her supervisor.
“Hey, Rachel, which time zone are you in?”
“Same one as you, Marcia. I’m in North Carolina. My sister...passed away.”
“So that’s why the hospital called looking for you. I’m sorry, Rachel. What happened?”
“A car accident. Single vehicle versus tree. Speed and alcohol were not factors.” She relayed the words the police officer had told her in a matter-of-fact tone and recognized what she was doing—distancing herself from the horrific event. She did a lot of that in her line of work.
“Is there anything I can do?”
Nervousness churned Rachel’s stomach. “Actually, I need your help finding an apartment or a house to rent by Friday. Any chance you know of one in an area with good schools?”
“Schools?”
“I gained custody of my...niece.”
“Wow. How old is she?”
“Chastity’s thirteen going on thirty. Do you think the school your kids go to would take her?”
“Hmm. It is a rotten time to transfer a kid with final exams just weeks away, but given your situation and a few letters of recommendation from the staff here who have kids already enrolled, they probably would. I’ll ask around about housing, and I’ll text you the school’s contact info.”
“That would be great.”
“If the private school can’t help you, then the public schools in my area are pretty good. You’re still coming back Monday, right?”
“That’s the plan. Thanks, Marcia. I’ll be in touch.” Rachel disconnected. Getting out of Johnstonville ASAP was critical. But she dreaded Matt’s and Chastity’s reactions to her plan.
* * *
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Chastity asked from the doorway, her wide eyes fixed on the dozen cardboard boxes Rachel had picked up at the hardware store on the way back from the grocer’s.
Rachel’s heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t heard a car drive up. Was Matt here? She glanced out and saw a minivan pulling away from the curb. “I’m getting ready to pack. Want to help?”
“No.”
Rachel sat back on her haunches and sighed. “Chastity, I need your input on what you want to take with you right now. We’ll have to come back this summer for the rest.”
“You said we could stay here.” She thrust out her bloodred bottom lip.
“No. I said I’d think about staying temporarily. And I did. But it won’t work.” Rachel rose and crossed the room. She reached out to smooth Chastity’s over-teased hair, but the teen shied away. “My boss needs me to get back to work.”
“You can be a nurse in Johnstonville.”
“There are no helicopter crews here. I love the job I have and my team.”
“I’ll stay here.”
“That’s not an option. I thought you were excited about house-hunting and shopping. You’ll make new friends. The schools are really good in Atlanta and—”
“I like Johnstonville. I like my school.”
“Of course you do. They’re familiar and comfortable, but there are new and exciting adventures around the corner.”
“I don’t want adventures.”
Rachel’s frustration spiked. Her hands were tied. “We can’t stay here. I know transitions are hard, but we’ll make it work. You’ve always loved Atlanta.”
“If I move now I’ll be the new kid. I won’t know anyone. Don’t you remember how much you hated it when your parents moved you to new schools all the time? You’re turning into them.”
Rachel flinched at the direct hit. “You’ll only move once.”
“Then I’ll have to start a new high school in the fall. That’s two new schools in only a few months.”
True. Rachel sighed. “Chas—”
“I want to graduate middle school here with my friends. Can’t you wait until school’s out? Then I won’t be the only new kid when I start high school.”
“I can’t get five more weeks off work. I’ve already been gone almost four.”
“Have you even tried?”
Rachel hesitated. “There’s a shortage of Life Flight nurses because of the additional training and certifications required. I can’t leave my team in the lurch. It’s not fair to them.”
“It’s not fair to me to make me move now. We have a lot to do here. If we stay this summer we can take our time and do it right. And we won’t have to come back.”
She applauded Chastity’s mature logic, but she couldn’t risk staying. “We’re leaving for Atlanta Friday morning. We can visit the schools that afternoon and start house-hunting on Saturday.”